Easyjet passenger pictured sitting on seat with no back rest in the cabin

An image has appeared on Twitter showing a female passenger on an Easyjet flight from London to Geneva sitting on a seat with no backrest.

Mathew Harris a passenger who posted the picture on Twitter sad he was the flight and his partner took the picture.

Easyjet then asked Harris to delete the photo as the airline said no passengers were allowed to sit in seats that “were inoperative awaiting repair.” Harris then asked, “how can this be allowed.”

He insisted that it was in fact her seat and he added, “One has to wonder how safe the rest of the plane was.”

#easyjet beats @Ryanair to have backless seats. @IATA @EASA this is flight 2021 Luton to Geneva. How can this be allowed. @GeneveAeroport @easyJet_press @easyJet pic.twitter.com/EthMoWRR8P

— Matthew Harris (@mattiasharris) August 6, 2019

He wrote on Twitter, “The lady was moved to a spare seat once the flight was fully boarded. Not sure what would have happened if the flight was full.”

People were outraged and a person said on Twitter, “The audacity to ask you to remove your photo!”

Another asked: “Was the plane full and were passengers sitting in those seats for take off and landing?

“If they were moved, then it’s not really that shocking. If folk were sitting in them for the whole flight, heads will surely roll?”

However, a spokesman for Easyjet said, “No passengers were permitted to sit in these seats as they were inoperative awaiting repair.

“Safety is our highest priority and easyJet operates its fleet of aircraft in strict compliance with all safety guidelines.”

Asad Moghal, a digital and content manager at Byfield Consultancy said, “While it can be difficult to deal with complaints online, and the goal is always to move the conversation offline, Easyjet’s response isn’t great.”

He added,“By asking to remove picture, Easyjet is at risk of facilitating the idea that they want to hide the problem rather than dealing with it.

“This is a textbook example of the Streisand Effect, the more you try to censor a comment, the more likely the internet will make it viral.”